Trying to Forget
by Caroline Dorothy
Summary: What happens to the Eleventh Doctor when the Bad Wolf appears again?
1. Chapter 1

It's funny how he can get himself into these situations. He ate one banana, dropped the peel without realizing and he slipped on it (rather ungracefully). He tripped onto the TARDIS console and the TARDIS awoken, getting ready to take him somewhere the Doctor probably didn't want to be. He just closed his eyes and waited for Sexy to land.

When she did, and he was brave enough to open his eyes, The Doctor walked out of the TARDIS, expecting the worst. He didn't understand why, but he was in present day London. It took him a moment to realize his exact surroundings, but he was standing in front of the store where he first met Rose… By blowing up her workplace of course.

The Doctor smiled at the bittersweet memory and walked into the store. He was just walking through, thinking about Rose. He usually kept her out of his mind, as looking back hurt too much. A great mind gave him the idea for a 'mind palace' and he used it often. There was so much he had to keep out in order to keep going forward.

The Doctor wasn't really looking at the items, or the people. He was just walking and trying his hardest to keep a clear mind. He did catch a bit of a conversation not too far from him without meaning to.

"Excuse me," a weighty woman asked a clerk. "I can't tell the price of this dress." She didn't look amused as she held up a floral dress.

"What do you mean?" the confused and young clerk asked before taking a look at the tag. "That's funny…"

"So you see it too?" the weighty woman looked slightly relieved. "It's like that on every tag."

"Bad Wolf isn't even a brand I know of…" The clerk started to make her way to the cash register when the Doctor began to run towards them, jumping over a table of over-priced pants to get to them.

"May I see that?" The Doctor held out his hand expectantly, waiting for the dress. The woman reluctantly handed it over. He studied the tag carefully. Any place there was supposed to be a word or number, it had been replaced with "BAD WOLF." The Doctor was in disbelief. "Thank you…" He muttered before handing it back and turning around.

The signs that hung from the ceiling around the store that once said "SALE" or "SHOES" or "PLUS-SIZES" now simply stated "BAD WOLF"

He ran out of the store. All of the store signs, license plates, build boards… Anything with words, letters, or numbers on it, now seemed to scream "BAD WOLF". Even "POLICE BOX" and the instructions for the police box on the TARDIS had been replaced with "BAD WOLF".

Everybody seemed just as confused as he was, so he knew he wasn't totally crazy and he wasn't imagining things. This could be, as it was last time, a sign that Rose was coming back. The Doctor smiled slightly, but knew not to keep his hopes up too high. He went inside the TARDIS and saw that the controls were all locked in place. H was meant to be here. Or the TARDIS wanted Rose back just as badly as he did.

The Doctor exited the TARDIS and stood around. He couldn't do a thing but wait and see if she were to ever come back He wondered how long he would have to wait to see, but a car parking right next to him on the street rudely interrupted his thoughts. The Doctor just shrugged it off until…

"DOCTOR!" A voice called out his name. He turned around and was immediately hugged by none other than Captain Jack Harkness.

The Doctor laughed and returned the hug. "What are you doing here?" The Doctor enjoyed asking the first question.

"The Bad Wolf! There are signs everywhere, Doctor. All over the world there's mass confusion, but it all started here. I figured she's start with you." He smiled. He was proud of himself for figuring this out on his own.

"So you actually think she's coming?" He didn't even think about introducing Jack to his new face, but Jack didn't seem to mind. Knowing what Bad Wolf meant and a police box was enough validation for him.

"It looks that way!" Jack laughed, excited. The Doctor was just as excited as Jack was, but he hid it well.

"We just have to wait now… "She's a smart girl, she'll find us." He nodded and sat down on the steps into a store. Jack followed suit.

"Have you found anyone else since her?" Jack looked at the Doctor and knew what he meant.

"Kind of… It was complicated… She's dead now…" The Doctor sighed as he thought about River Song.

"Dead, or stuck in a parallel universe?" Jack raised an eyebrow, thinking about the Doctor's predicament.

"Well, stuck in a computer actually. She was saved." He nodded and Jack gave him a funny look. "Long story." He didn't feel like talking for once and Jack understood.

"What about you?" The Doctor turned it back over to Jack. "Still just flirting?" He smirked.

Jack shook his head solemnly. "It's complicated." The Doctor didn't dare push for more information.

Their friendship, while they were apart for so long, was undamaged. Neither of the two could really die with ease. They both had long lives ahead of them, but they had both been through a lot already. Emotionally, the pair was already spent. They had been through heartbreaks and losses, but they carried on.

There were things that just didn't need saying between the two.

After a moment of silence, The Doctor spoke. "You can spend the night in the TARDIS if you'd like to stay nearby. I'm not moving till I get some word from Rose." He nodded, thinking about how stubborn the TARDISI was being right now.

"That would be brilliant." Jack grinned, trying so hard to brighten the mood by using an older Doctor's catch phrase.

"Do you like bunk beds?" The Doctor asked. He had refused to get rid of them.

Jack looked at him and shrugged. "Sure, why not."

"You get bunk beds." He laughed. He had been lonely with Amy and Rory gone to live their lives and River dead. He was thankful for Jack and the prospect of Rose.

Now they just had to wait and hope that it wasn't just a hope, but the real thing.


	2. Chapter 2

In the morning, The Doctor woke up first. He checked the console. The controls were all still stuck, which meant that there was still hope for Rose's arrival.

After sleeping, he wondered if this was such a good thing that she was coming back. If she used the same method as last time, she would tear a hole through the universes again. That would be a disaster waiting to happen. Last time she came through, she also came through as a warning of the supposed end.

He didn't want that again either.

He sighed and peeked his head out the door. "BAD WOLF" was still everywhere. He then went back inside to see if the monitor on the console still worked. It did, luckily enough. He turned it to BBCnews to see what they were saying about the "BAD WOLF" dilemma.

"All over the world, confusion and chaos as the signs of the world were all suddenly changed to say 'Bad Wolf'. What does it mean? Who would do this? Is it reason for alarm?" The Doctor had his answer, so he turned it off. Rose was still calling out.

"How are you this energetic in the morning?" asked Jack groggily as he stumbled into the console room.

"Bad Wolf is still everywhere." was the Doctor's reply. To him, that was more than enough reason to stay up all night if he had to.

"You changed the TARDIS." Jack noticed and looked around. It was late when they finally gave up on waiting for Rose for one night, so he didn't get a chance to see it in the light, or he didn't care enough to look last night.

"Yeah, she changed herself and gave me a new sonic." He showed it off proudly. This was the first time he had shown it off to someone who could compare it to his last one. "Do you like it?" He grinned.

"I like your last one better." He nodded, firm with his opinion. "But it's rather nice." He didn't want to hurt the Doctor's feelings.

"What about my face?" He talked about his new appearance for the first time with Jack. "What do you think about it?"

"It's a very nice face." Jack assured him.

"Now compare it!" He wanted to know if he changed for the better.

"I like the first one I saw. I think the ears gave you special powers." Jack teased him.

"Haha. You're so funny." He rolled his eyes. He really didn't mind though.

"I do have one question about your new look." Jack let him know.

"What's that?" The Doctor looked at him.

"What in the world were you thinking when you put on a bow tie?" Jack laughed.

The Doctor sighed. He didn't understand the bow tie hate. "I wear a bow tie now." He adjusted it. "Bow ties are cool." He nodded.

Jack rolled his eyes this time. "Whatever you say." He chuckled.

Suddenly, there was a loud banging at the door. The Doctor leaped to the door, hoping that it would be Rose. When the Doctor got to the door, he looked at Jack. Jack nodded encouragingly. He wanted to see her too.

The Doctor took a breath and flung the door open with a huge smile on his face. At the door was… Jackie? The Doctor's smile quickly left his face.

"Oh. It's only you." He went back to the console and sat down, disappointed that it wasn't the right Tyler.

"Where's my daughter?" Jackie yelled.

Jack walked over to her, prepared to calm her down. "We haven't seen Rose…" Jackie frowned.

"I thought she'd be with you…" She walked inside and looked at the Doctor. "You've changed your face again. And the inside of your spaceship." She nodded, pointing out the obvious.

"Yup." was the only thing the Doctor said. He was in sulking mode.

"Why did Rose come to this universe?" Jack finally asked the important question. "Didn't she have her own version of the Doctor? Wasn't she happy?"

"I thought she was happy," Jackie began "I truly did. Our Doctor, we call him John, started having to go on a lot of business trips for Torchwood since he knew the most and Rose started getting ideas every time he was gone. She would ask him questions when he came back, but she never seemed too sad while he was gone anymore. Turns out she was building something to get over here, to your universe. She made two as one was supposed to be for John, but she's my daughter. I had to come looking for her."

The Doctor nodded, after hearing her ramble on about her daughter. "Why would she come to this universe?"

Jack and Jackie both looked at him incredulously.

"To see you, you twit!" Jackie yelled, trying to get out some anger and frustration.

"Come, I'll make you tea." Jack led her to the kitchen, leaving the Doctor with his thoughts.

She came back for him? Why? She had John! Why can't she just be happy so he could push her out of his mind palace? Of course, that would be impossible for him to do, but it's nice for him to convince himself he could.

Was she lost? What if she only got halfway and she was stuck in the void? Or in another century? Or in China? The Doctor could only imagine the worst. It was terrible.

Jackie came back with her tea and Jack. She was noticeably calmer. She was so British.

"So where is she then?" Jackie took a seat. "The quicker she gets here the quicker she can give you style advice. You look silly." Jackie laughed, thinking that he daughter wasn't too far away.

"My bow tie is cool!" He defended it once again. Before he could get his word in about Rose, Jack interrupted.

"We don't know, Jackie. Simple as that." Jack stated with a face clear of expression. The Doctor wanted to use more technical language, but what Jack had said was the stupid people/Jackie version.

"All we can do is wait for her." The Doctor added. Jack looked at him indicating that he'd want a more technical answer later.

"So we're just going to sit here and have tea while my daughter could be in danger!" Jackie stared at the men. "I liked the old you better, Doctor. He would have done something by now." And with that, Jackie stormed off into the TARDIS.

The Doctor just sat there in his thoughts. He wondered if Jackie was right.

"There's nothing you can do, Doctor. Don't be yourself up over it." Jack tried to soothe him. Jack knew that this would affect him for the worse.

"What if we can't find her? I can't lose her again." The Doctor looked up at Jack.

"We will…" But Jack didn't sound so sure.


	3. Chapter 3

Two days later and the TARDIS wouldn't budge. Jack had decided to take Jackie to see Torchwood because she had been driving the Doctor mad.

The Doctor sat alone in quiet for the first time in a while, and it would have been nice if his mind would be quiet too.

Rose was on his mind, but so was Martha, Donna, Amy, Rory, Sarah… anyone who he had come across and changed him. If this didn't mean that Rose could be lost forever, he hoped that she never showed up. He wanted Rose to be happy without him. He wanted Rose to live a life like he never could.

Since he was alone and needed cheering up, he had put on his fez. The fez made him happy.

"What if she doesn't like the new me?" He finally spoke one of his biggest fears out-loud. He didn't wanted Rose to feel as if she wasted her tip on him. "What if she's repulsed by me? What if she finds out about River Song… And she has to go back to her own universe and… I need some mental help. I'm talking to a fez." He sighed and rolled his eyes.

He also wondered if she tore a hole through the universes. That could ruin a lot of things. It would be another mess for him to clean up. Would it be worth it to see Rose again?

He didn't know. He swore he was becoming more and more human by the day. He couldn't tell if this was a good thing or not…

Just as the Doctor was prepared to do more unnecessary thinking, there was a knock on the door. It wouldn't be Jack and Jackie. He gave Jack a key and the TARDIS wasn't locked.

The Doctor started at the door for a few seconds until there was another knock. He got up and made his way to the door. He put a hand on the handle and slowly turned it. He took a deep breath and opened it.

On the other side of the door was the beautiful and blond, Miss Rose Tyler.

She blinked at him. "Are you the Doctor?" She still had her accent. She looked at him with a confused face.

A smile slowly crept onto his face. "Why yes, Miss Tyler. I do believe I am." With that one sentence that let Rose know that she had finally found him again, Rose flung her self at him, enveloping him into as big of a hug as her small frame allowed. The Doctor stumbled, but hugged her back with a laugh.

"I missed you…" Rose whispered into the Doctor's chest. "You regenerated again though." She sighed and let go. They had a lot to catch up on.

He could tell that she wanted the old him back and he wished that he was able to give that to her.

"Your mum has been looking for you…" He figured he should give her a head's up.

"How'd she get here?" She did not look pleased.

"She's out with Jack now. She apparently came the same way you did." He raised his eyebrows, letting her know of his disapproval.

"We can talk about it later. Let's just get caught up on… Stuff." She pushed past him and into the TARDIS. Her eyes widened in surprise. "I didn't know that the TARDIS could regenerate too!" She wanted everything to be back to how it used to be. She didn't think it was fair.

"It's complicated, but isn't she sexy?" He asked with a grin.

"You worry me. " She laughed. "Want to know what worries me even more?" Rose put a hand on her hip.

"Enlighten me, Miss Tyler." It seemed that she never left for that moment, as they continued their friendly banter.

"What the hell are you wearing!" Rose burst out laughing.

"It's a fez." He remembered the fez on his head and pulled it off. He was blushing ever so slightly now. "I wear a fez now. Fezzes are cool." He said with a cheeky grin.

"And around your neck?" She was fighting back a laugh as she pointed to his bow tie.

"My bow tie is even cooler than the fez!" He pretended to look hurt because of her questions towards his fashion choices.

"Like I said, I worry about you." She laughed slightly before doing her famous smile with her tongue between her teeth.

The Doctor realized then how much he really missed her.

"Anything else change?" She was almost scared to ask.

He nodded before taking out his sonic screwdriver. "This changed. First day of regeneration was pretty crazy…" He ran a hand through his hair and laughed nervously.

Rose took the screwdriver from him and studied it closely. "What about companions?" She asked quietly, not looking at him.

"I've had three. Amy and Rory, they were married." He quickly assured her. "And River Song…. Things were complicated with her."

"How so complicated?" She asked, now looking at him.

"First time I met her, she died. That was in the regeneration that you last saw me in." He nodded.

"But you knew her in this regeneration?" She looked very confused about all of this.

"She was Amy and Rory's daughter." He was specifically leaving out the married part.

"How old were they?" She never thought that he'd bring along old parents with him, nor young children.

"Not old at all. I was at their wedding." He nodded.

"Sounds like you had fun." Rose tried a smile.

"What about you?" He smiled warmly at her as she walked around the console, studying everything.

"Torchwood." She shrugged.

"You and Jack have a lot to talk about." He nodded again. "Your Doctor not cutting it?" He wanted to get to the reason why she came here in the first place. Jackie's reason was confusing and vague.

She sighed and sat down. "Only him and I know what problems we're having right now…"

"You can tell me." He put a hand on her shoulder and spoke soothingly.

"Since he has a human body, he can get human diseases…" She spoke slowly and the Doctor just listened. "And now... Now he has cancer with only a month or two to live. I told him I wanted to come find you and he encouraged it." She began to tear up.

The Doctor brought her into a hug with the attempt to make her feel better. He rubbed her back and thought of the last time he could do this. It had been a while. He had no clue how he was supposed to fix this problem.


End file.
